I have been going through the latest issue of Cinema
Retro (Season 8 / Issue 22) and I'm overwhelmed. Before seeing it, I would have
said it couldn't be done, but you've done it. This is really the best issue of
Cinema Retro yet! All of the coverage on Cinerama is wonderful! Dark of the Sun
is a knockout. You all just keep getting better and better. Keep up the great
work. You now have another milestone issue to improve upon. Thank you!

Bill Shaffer

Tecumseh, Kansas

Retro responds: Bill, thanks so much. We take pride in the fact that we're probably the only film magazine in the world to devote so much time and attention to an otherwise neglected gem like Dark of the Sun. It's proven to be one of our most popular articles ever, an indication that the general public knows a lot more about the real value of certain films than some of those "historians" who think a movie only matters if it has sub-titles. We believe we've fulfilled our initial goal of providing in-depth coverage of movies that are often neglected by the traditional critical establishment, though I have to say any number of prominent critics do contact us to tell us they agree with our sentiments about some of these titles. Returning to Dark of the Sun specifically, kudos are in order for writer Howard Hughes for providing such fascinating insights into the movie. I should mention that Dave Worrall's painstakingly-researched sidebar addressing rumors of "uncut prints" of the film has elicited numerous responses from readers. Some claim they recall seeing specific scenes in British prints in remote cinemas back in 1968. However, we have not been able to verify any of this. In England, the board of censors must give approval for any final cut to be released. The notion that a film company would risk severe financial and legal penalties to smuggle a "rogue print" of a movie to a rural cinema defies credulity. We believe that many people read the source novel decades ago and believe they saw some additional graphic sequences from the book in the film, as well. Worrall's research proved that there were sequences shot for the movie and excised before it was released. However, we still have no conclusive proof that any print other than that shown in the majority of cinemas ever existed. Sometimes movie fan's minds play tricks on them and they believe they saw sequences that never existed. I will point out an analogy. Back in the 1950s, Groucho Marx hosted the TV game show You Bet Your Life. In one famous instance, Groucho interviewed a man who said he had a very large family. Groucho asked him why he had so many children. "I like kids", the man said. To which, Groucho replied, "I like a good cigar, but even I take it out once in a while!" Countless people believe to this day that they saw that broadcast and embellish their tales with recollections of how shocked everyone was that such a sexually provocative remark could be telecast during that era. In fact, it wasn't. Groucho did indeed make that wisecrack, but the only people who actually heard it were those in the studio audience. It was never broadcast, yet it became such an urban legend that people to this day can specifically remember seeing it on TV. Such may be the case with the much-rumored, never-proven "uncut" prints of Dark of the Sun.

To order issue #22 of Cinema Retro featuring Dark of the Sun, see our back issues section or click here to order from Ebay.